CHANGES TO THE AGRICULTURAL CHILD LABOR REGULATIONS: What it could mean when hiring young people on the farm

By: Dee Jepsen, Assistant Professor, Agricultural Safety Specialist

Recently the Department of Labor issued a proposed ruling to change the kinds of agricultural equipment and agricultural chores young people (under age 16) would be permitted to perform. Farm employers and agricultural businesses are encouraged to read more about the proposed changes and how these changes will affect youth working in agricultural settings.

To access the complete document, visit the US DOL website: http://webapps.dol.gov/FederalRegister/HtmlDisplay.aspx?DocId=25286&Month=9&Year=2011

These proposed changes will be the first update since 1970. They are designed to bring agricultural jobs in line with other guidelines required of employers in non-agricultural areas. NOTE: The proposed rules would continue to exempt children working on family farms.  A summary of the changes include:

1) Regulatory changes to the Child Labor Laws for Agriculture.

• Tractors operated by 14 and 15-year old youth be equipped with approved Roll-Over Protective Structures (ROPS) and seatbelts; and that seatbelt use be mandated.

• Prohibit the use of tractors of any horse power, including small garden-tractors; whereby the training exemption will either be removed or changed to 90 hours of study.

• Require that student learners operating tractors & farm machinery on public roads have a valid state driver’s license.

• Prohibit use of electronic devices, including communication devices, while operating tractors, power-driven equipment, and motor vehicles.

• Restrict use of all power-driven equipment (similar to that of non-agricultural industries).

• Prohibit minors from riding as passengers on all farm machines when on public roads, and all student learners riding as passengers must have an “approved seat and seatbelt” with a mandatory use seat belt policy.

• Prohibit employment in occupations involving operation of non-powered driven hoisting apparatus and conveyers; no student-learner exemption would be permitted.

• Prohibit certain occupations involving working with or around animals: includes handling animals with known dangerous behaviors; assisting in animal husbandry practices that inflict pain upon animal or result in unpredictable behavior (such as branding, breeding, dehorning, vaccinating, castrating, and treating sick/injured animals); poultry catching or cooping in preparation for market; working in a yard, pen, or stall of an intact (non-castrated) male animals or with female animals with suckling offspring or umbilical cords present; herding animals in confined spaces or on horseback, or using motorized vehicles such as trucks or all terrain vehicles.

• Prohibit the felling, bucking, skidding, loading, or unloading timber of any size; and prohibit the removal of stumps except by manual means

• Prevent the employment in construction, communications, wrecking, demolition, and excavation for youth 14-15 years of age.

• Prevent the employment while working on roofs, scaffolds, ladders, and elevations greater than 6 feet, including elevated farm structures like grain bins, silos, windmills, and towers, as well as elevated farm equipment and implements.

• Prohibit driving all motor vehicles and off-road vehicles by youth younger than 16.

• Prohibit work inside a fruit, forage, silo, grain bin, or manure pit.

• Consistent with EPA Worker Protection Standards for pesticides, ban all work that falls within the EPA classification of pesticide handler.

• Prohibit the employment of young workers in tobacco processes – includes planting, cultivating, topping, harvesting, baling, barning, and curing.

• A new non-agricultural regulation prohibiting the employment of youth in occupations containing farm-product raw materials and wholesale trade industries – includes work performed at country grain elevators, grain elevators, grain bins, silos, feed lots, feed yards, stockyards, livestock exchanges, and livestock auctions.

2) Changes to the training exemption – commonly known as the Tractor Certification Program – Eliminates training offered through Cooperative Extension programs. Recognizes programs taught through school-based agricultural education programs and their instructors. The proposal also seeks to increase training from 24 hours to 90 hours.

Like any new proposed changes, there is an opportunity for the public to comment. The time period to comment is open through the end of November. All comments, from multiple perspectives, are welcome – and especially from those who employ young workers, are educators of young workers, or are parents of young workers. The most beneficial remarks are those that are based on fact or true experiences. Emotional pleas or statements with broad generalizations are not as helpful as those that are written with clear objectives, provide explanatory observations, or give suggestions for consideration. 

 To comment on the ruling or read reviews of others, visit the Regulations.gov Website:

http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;dct=FR%2BPR%2BN%2BO%2BSR%2BPS;rpp=10;po=0;D=WHD-2011-0001

Labor industry professionals are working to improve the conditions of the work environment for young workers. In my role as the Extension Agricultural Safety Leader, I encourage readers to review the proposed changes and be familiar with these changes. When the implemented, they will change the employment flexibility that farmers and agricultural businesses have when hiring youth under age 16.

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